If he needed to, World War II veteran Ralph DeLoy of Rehoboth Beach could get to the Wilmington Veterans Affairs Medical Center near Elsmere, he said, looking to his daughter-in-law.

“I’d have to get somebody to take me,” the 92-year-old said.

Like DeLoy, many veterans are finding it hard to travel from Sussex County to Elsmere for medical care.

“The problem for most of these people is transportation,” said Joanne Stafford, former president of American Legion Auxiliary Unit 17 in Lewes.­

To reach rural areas, the medical center launched a Mobile Outreach Clinic, which saw its first patient last July. The clinic travels to the American Legion Post 17 in Lewes and locations in Millsboro, Milford, Laurel, Ocean View, Rehoboth Beach and parts of New Jersey to provide primary care services, immunizations, lab services and mental health referrals.

“All they have to do is drive a couple of miles and they’re here,” Stafford said.

The program still has room to grow, but for now patients seem pleased, according to Ginny Yelland, executive assistant to the director of the medical center. In the past year, the clinic has seen 223 veterans during 428 appointments.­

“We’ve been pleased with our progress,” she said.

One of the biggest challenges the clinic faces is getting the word out that the service is available, said nurse practitioner Michele Kuhn, who has worked in the unit since it first opened.

“Word of mouth is the best way to (spread the news) about what we have,” Kuhn said. “When they do find out about it they’re very excited.”

Another challenge is keeping the pacing in the clinic correct, making sure appointments and walk-ins are distributed so there is less overlap.

In the year the program has operated, Kuhn has seen some change in activity at the sites. Lewes was once slow, but has picked up recently, and Laurel was so slow they dropped visits to once a month, but now more people have been signing up.

In addition to medical services, someone is always stationed in the unit to enroll veterans for benefits if they are eligible, and if a person isn’t sure if they qualify, the specialist can check.

Sen. Tom Carper, who visited the clinic June 30, said the difference between care now and when he returned from the Vietnam War in the fall of 1973 is night and day. And improvements continue, he said — this summer the mobile clinic will be equip with technology patients can use to connect with doctors in Wilmington or other hospitals, known as telemedicine.

“As we get better with technology, we’ll do more with that,” Carper said. “Everything we do, I know we can do better.”

The schedule for the mobile clinic is completed on a monthly basis, and can be found at www.wilmington.va.gov. To make an appointment, call 302-668-4371.

IF YOU GO

MOBILE OUTREACH CLINIC

Where: For July, the clinic is scheduled to the American Legion Post 28 in Millsboro July 9; the VFW Post 7234 in Ocean View July 10 and 24; the American Legion Post 17 in Lewes July 14 and 28; the Women’s Clinic in Milford July 16 and VFW Post 7447 in Rehoboth Beach July 17.